Current-events digest: 25 September 2026

2026 09 25 yes

Armed conflicts and attacks

Sudanese civil war

Kordofan campaign

The Sudanese Armed Forces announces that they have recaptured Sodri, North Kordofan. (Radio Tamazuj)

Two civilians are killed in a drone strike by Rapid Support Forces in El Obeid. (Sudan Tribune)

Sudanese refugee crisis

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports a sharp increase in refugees fleeing from Sudan to Chad in a effort to escape the civil war and dire conditions, with 400 people a day crossing eastern Chad. (Reuters)

2026 Iran war

2026 Iran war ceasefire, 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis

The Wall Street Journal reports that United States president Donald Trump has rejected Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and halt regional fighting within seven days in exchange for easing U.S. sanctions and releasing Iranian frozen funds. (Reuters)

Russo-Ukrainian war

Kyiv strikes, Russian attacks on civilians in the Russo-Ukrainian war

Russian drone and missile strikes on residential buildings and other civilian sites in Kyiv, Ukraine, kill seven people, including a 14-year-old boy, and injure 46 others. (AFP via News.com.au)

Somali Civil War

Piracy off the coast of Somalia, Anti-piracy measures

The Puntland Maritime Police Force successfully frees the oil tanker Sibu 1 following a multi-day counter-piracy operation near Garacad, Mudug, Puntland, after it was seized by Somali pirates in August. (Idil News) (Reuters)

2026 Afghanistan–Pakistan war

Pakistan says that its military has killed 13 Afghan security forces during shootouts at the border. Afghanistan's government denies the claim. (Al Jazeera) (AP)

Business and economy

Gambling in Brazil

Days before the general election, Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva issues a provisional measure banning online betting in Brazil, immediately halting new deposits. Users may withdraw remaining funds until October 5, and Congress must approve the measure within 120 days for it to remain in force. (AFP via France 24) (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

2026 Kenge Let L-410 crash

A military-leased Let L-410 carrying 17 people, including two generals, crashes near Kenge, Kwango, Democratic Republic of the Congo, while on route to Kinshasa, killing all passengers. (AA) (Reuters)

Seven people are killed and 13 others are injured when a bus overturns on a road near Iraquara, Bahia, Brazil. (G1)

Six people are killed and two others injured during the collapse of a two-storey building in Plaka, Athens, Greece, after an explosion caused by a suspected gas leak. (AFP via France 24) (AP) (BBC News)

Two people are killed and 13 more injured in a fire at a residential building in Lucca, Tuscany, Italy. (ANSA)

Health and environment

2023–2026 mpox epidemic

A laboratory-confirmed mpox case from a 21-year-old woman is reported in Bunia, Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (Reuters)

International relations

China–United States relations

China–United States trade war, 2026 state visit by Xi Jinping to the United States

China and the United States reach an agreement to cut tariffs on $30 ‌billion of goods and launch a dialogue on artificial intelligence. (Reuters)

Humanitarian impact of the Sudanese civil war

Chad–Sudan relations

Authorities in the Darfur region open the Tina crossing at the border with Chad for aid deliveries across North Darfur. (Sudan Tribune)

Law and crime

2026 political prisoner release in Venezuela

Venezuela releases at least 29 detainees whom rights groups classify as political prisoners following a second round of talks between the interim government and opposition, while organizations continue verifying the number and identities of those freed. (AFP via RFI)

Mary Jane Veloso drug smuggling case

Mary Jane Veloso is released from a prison in Mandaluyong, Philippines, after president Bongbong Marcos's absolute pardon of her was approved yesterday. (Arab News) (Rappler)

Four people are killed and four more injured in a mass shooting on a street in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The perpetrators are on the run. (Al Jazeera)

A court in Paris, France, sentences Loik Le Priol to 26 years in prison and Romain Bouvier to 19 years for murdering former Argentine rugby union player Federico Martín Aramburú in 2022. Le Priol and Bouvier had links to the dissolved far-right group Groupe Union Défense. (AP) (BBC News)

Sri Lanka's parliament approves a constitutional amendment extending the terms of senior judges by two years as part of efforts to reduce an estimated 1.1 million-case backlog. (Reuters)

Sports

2026 Asian Games

China at the 2026 Asian Games, Swimming at the 2026 Asian Games

In swimming, China's Zhang Zhanshuo becomes the first athlete to win seven gold medals at a single Asian Games, securing his seventh title in the men's 400-metre freestyle with a Games-record time of 3:41.28. (AFP)

In association football, an independent Premier League commission finds Manchester City F.C. guilty of 114 of 115 alleged financial-rule breaches spanning the 2009–10 to 2022–23 seasons. (CNN)

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